Betoriv
Betoriv is a continent in the world of Carokiiv in the Tides of Fate canon. It is situated west of the planet, and is considered the most peaceful landmass by many, which became "the envy of Setora." Betoriv is populated by all the races, but the dominant race in Betoriv are the humans, which make up a majority of the population, and are represented in all jobs and stations in life. History Early History Betoriv was always the birthplace of humanity, long before the Beast Races even appeared in the continent. For much of the early history of Betoriv, the Beast Races held power and prestige, when they lorded over the humans and used them as their slaves. This caused mass discontent among humanity, which became the first race among all the Near Human races to rebel. Thus, Betoriv begins with a bloody history of man against beast in a struggle for dominance and hegemony of Betoriv. The power within Betoriv experienced a great shift when the fabled event known as the "Advent of Magic" happened, where many humans and the other Near Humans throughout the world were granted the gift of using magic. The power of magic soon ensured the rebellions against the Beast Races by the humans was a success, and magic users eventually recaptured their ancestral lands by continuously destroying the civilisation of the Beast Races, pushing them back. The early history of Betoriv thus ends with the humans enslaving the Beast Races, and subjugating them with the power of magic at their command. Using these slaves. Humanity began to rebuild their civilisation, and they soon managed to reach a point of stability The Dark Age While the future looked bright for the humans and Betoriv after the Beast Races were defeated with the power of magic, the first mistake made by humans was to build civilisation using brute strength like the Beast Races, not depending on magic. Depending on their normal abilities and brute strength was due to the existing skepticism towards magic and so they did not become reliant on it. Betoriv finally began to improve after civilisation was rebuilt. This originally noble intent slowly warped over the years into humanity becoming distrustful of magic. Thus, the very power that allowed humanity to become free became the enemy of humanity. Betoriv natives began to harbor a stigma against magic users, for they realized that if the magic users destroyed the Beast Races so easily, said users could turn on the non magical humans to subjugate them. Within Betoriv, those who were born with no ability to wield magic began their persecution of the magic wielders in due time, out of fear. They were the majority at that time, and so they used their much superior numbers to conduct witch hunts against the magic users in order to purge magic from the world, and thus a long standing discrimination against magic users began, where those caught would be tried and killed as evil "witches" and "wizards". This period in Betoriv was known as the "Dark Age", as it was a regressive age where humanity was a weak race, and Betoriv remained a weak nation as Setora and Kyrsides improved. Magic users hid their talents and went into hiding, practicing only when they were not observed due to fear of getting tried and killed. Humanity imitated the other Near Human species, and tried their best to build civilisation in the same manner, except without magic. The mages of Betoriv suffered in silence and wished for a day where they would be able to freely use magic again and help contribute to making Betoriv a strong and powerful nation. As the non magic users who were out to kill them still outnumbered them drastically, the mages could not do much to protest their current state, and Betoriv never developed strongly. Age of Enlightenment Betoriv's future looked grim once more, as the civilisations of Kyrsides and Setora were starting to have major advantages in standard of living and military power compared to Betoriv. The salvation of Betoriv came in the form of a single man, the great hero Kyron Avelenyss the Zero King. He was born as a response to the pleas of the many mages who suffered in silence. With his power, Kyron vowed to put a permanent end to the corrupted decadence within Betoriv, and make it the strongest nation of all of Karokiiv, built with magic as a base, similar to Elven society. Wielding the undeniably powerful magic that became the Vitakinetic Art of ruling life and death alongside his other powers, Kyron brought judgement to those who persecuted mages by slaughtering them in huge numbers with a band of ardent supporters, in his mission to bring light to Betoriv again. The humans who denounced magic now had an opponent they couldn't defeat, no matter how many of them banded together as their sheer numbers meant nothing against a single hero who vowed to use his magic to rebuild Betoriv as a stronger nation. The Zero King led his crusade in Betoriv with the strong support of the Asterians of Flinrock, as he had married their High Asterian as his Queen and Wife. Together, they served as a great inspiration to the other mages of Betoriv, who began to band around him. Enlisting the help of the other near human races, Kyron and his mage army used sheer power and force to kill a majority of normal humans that decided to uphold the persecution of mages as a retributive justice, taking revenge against those who had oppressed them for so long. Kyron began the new age in Betoriv by granting Magical Circuits to those who were willing to support him using his abilities. Using the power of magic to rebuild civilisation with his army of mages, the Zero King brought the land out from an age of discrimination against mages, and thrust magic into the spotlight as a respectable art and modern civilisation began. The Zero King had noted the weaknesses of all those he had asked for help, and determined not to repeat any mistakes that afflicted the governments of Kyrisdes and Setora, he set up a new system of governance, where only the capable would lead and the input of those who didn't know better would be ignored. Becoming the first and only king of Betoriv, Kyron the Zero King codified the first magical systems, split the elements from the original intuition based magic and drew the first magic crest in himself and his followers. This made learning magic a lot easier for all and magic as a whole became accessible to humanity at large. Thus, he ushered in a new age of magical understanding and power within Betoriv, and turned magic into one of the cornerstones that Betoriv was built upon. The Age of Magic Kyron the Zero King managed to bring great advancement to Betoriv during his enlightened rule, due to his large amount of restructuring and the immense culture shifts he had perpetuated. Kyron knew that it was time for him to eventually leave as the king of Betoriv when he set humanity on the right path to rebuilding their nation. Kyron and his wife thus left Betoriv to the various politicians who were personally trained by him in the art of wise governance, forming the first Aristocratic government of Betoriv The old culture of Betoriv where mages faced persecution and discrimination was utterly destroyed in favor of one that was extremely conducive for magic users to live and magic became a widely respected and used art. The Mages of Betoriv became eager to unlock new secrets, aided by the many discoveries and new systems created by the Zero King when he codified and restructured magical education, leading to the inevitable discovery of even more magical methods and spells. Due to how powerful and properous Betoriv was becoming, other races began to immigrate, bringing their own knowledge to the land in the process. This drove continuous progress in Betoriv, which became even stronger day by day. Betoriv is credited as the place where the modern method to draw magical circuits was born. While the original magic to draw magical circuits was created by the elves, this had a high failure rate, and some elven immigrants taught the methods to the humans who lived in Betoriv. The human mages devised new and safer ways to draw circuits, and eventually the modern method was created. Due to further study in Betoriv, it became the place where the rest of soul magic was discovered. The refined techniques born in Betoriv also allowed magic families to draw new kinds of elemental circuits that was once Kyron's unique talent and even the famed Vitakinetic Channels that led to immortality. Thus Betoriv is rightly created as the birthplace of Vitakinesis and Soul Magic. The first family crest that incorporated the Vitakinetic Circuits was also created by a native of Betoriv, the Prodigy Ahriman Phenex, who was an exemplar mage and hero of Betoriv in his day. Other mages in Betoriv followed Ahriman's footsteps and created their own family crests that incorporated the Vitakinetic channels. This led to the birth of Betoriv's newer magic clans, such as the Ice aligned Heimdiall clan and the Lightning aligned Aesion clan. (To note, the Ayashi, Chronopsis, Avelenyss, Kinaste and Kudaigenov clans had their crests granted either from Kyron's effort or inheritance from Kyron, hence they are not under these clans.) With the support of these many talented mages, and a wise government, Betoriv slowly entered a state of not just power and prosperity, but even international prestige as they progressed at a great rate. Still learning from the mistakes of the other civilisations, the government of Betoriv noted that the elves had developed a stronger magical form, and began to take steps to secure it. Due to Betoriv's good security, several elven tactical class mages fled there, and they brought with them the knowledge of the new tactical magic, the powerful incantations which changed the battlefield in one spell. This information was taken in by the mage clans, who developed their own version of tactical magic. Realizing they would need something stronger if they wanted to protect the entire nation of Betoriv, some of the clans cooperated and began work on a new kind of even more powerful magic to destroy foes and end wars - the strategic magic. Age of Ascension The development and refinement of the tactical magic in the mage clans of Betoriv meant the nation was quite safe from incursions as Betoriv now had the military might that could turn away both Elven invaders from Kyrsides and the Dwarven invaders from Setora. Not missing out on the opportunity to learn more, Betoriv managed to secure technology from breaking down what they obtained from occasional small scale Setoran incursions. Adapting this technology and using magic as a substitute allowed further improvements to Betoriv via new innovations such as working sewage systems, a magical power grid that could supply heating, lighting and cooking demands, defense spires and such. Betoriv still faced the difficulty of not being able to create a Strategic Magic Spell as no mage would have the power to cast them, and only after an incident involving the Aesion and Phenex clans was the full power of the Grimoires realized. The Grimoire Equip was discovered from Reydan Aesion, and allowed the user to to cast magic beyond even the greatest human mages. The missing piece of the puzzle to solving the problem of transcending the output of Tactical Magic was finally completed, and Betoriv began work on creating the first Strategic Class Mage. Strategic Magic was thus born in Betoriv, and humanity had another triumph in the magical world to their name. Created just in time for deployment against an Elven incursion designed to test the defenses of Betoriv, the first Strategic Magus, Asyran Chronopsis, tore apart the entire Elven army and huge area around him with a single spell. Betoriv's most powerful discovery thus forced the whole of Carokiiv into an enforced peace due to the promise of Mutually Assured Destruction by Strategic Mages, and the military might of Betoriv would forever be cemented as the greatest. Modern Age Betoriv has established itself as one of the strongest nations on Carokiiv, if not the most powerful, after all the blood and sweat that was shed in the name of improvement and progress. Within Betoriv, magic now reigns as the ultimate art that fulfills many purposes. The number of people who could wield magic increased as humanity recovered from the debilitating defeat it inflicted upon itself in order to free the magic users from the oppression of the non magic users, and Betoriv has become one of the most populous states. Betoriv's government is able to govern the masses efficiently and effectively with a good intention, and they are made in a way to reduce bureaucracy and stamp out corruption of all kinds. Betoriv has also set up many of the best educational institutes in Carokiiv, such as their Mage Academies. Trade was also established with other nations whenever possible to make the economy prosper. Betoriv as a whole prospered in time to come, under a strong, unified government that is also a singular entity. Despite the extremely tumultuous, violent and uncertain history of Betoriv that was rife with tension, discrimination and war, Betoriv has recovered to become a state on a smooth sailing path towards their golden age. Culture General The land of Betoriv, as mentioned, is populated by all the Near Human races except for Asterians, which are rarely if ever found there. This has led to a strong flow of ideas from all over the world that has helped to improve the place, and also generally high tolerance levels for all kinds of seperate cultures that have made their home in the land. Betoriv is normally open for trade, and as a large land is capable of being self sufficient in terms of crisis. The people of Betoriv tend to place quite a heavy emphasis on the use of magic, and magic forms a pillar of Betoriv society, since the majority (70%) of citizens there are human, and the largest minority group is actually comprised of elves whom have either decided to settle down there, or have fled from the war torn nation of Kyrsides for somewhere safer. Both groups are very reverent of magic, and thus they have strong views regarding individuals with magic, or those that lack magic. Betoriv has built technologies that are ultimately based on magic, such as the use of spires and memory crystal banks to store and transmit information from various home appliances, a proper, well maintained sewage system, to a magical grid that supplies the energy needs of every home for lighting, heating and cooking. They appropriate technological advances and use magic to replicate the various technologies that they have seen, thus making Betoriv relatively advanced where hard infrastructure is concerned. Their military technology, partially reverse engineered from Dwarven technology and partially self created is high, and they use defense spires and airships. Due to the ethnic make up of Betoriv, many families in Betoriv are part of "Mage bloodlines" that utilize magic in their daily lives. These families tend to have Family Crest Circuits and form part of the social elite of Betoriv society, comprising most of their scholar and noble classes. However, the law does not give additional allowances to such families, and they must follow, like everyone else. Political machination is rare or non existent among this upper class, and they prefer to compete against each other in terms of magical strength or intelligence in safer settings like the arena. Betoriv society places a huge emphasis on meritocracy and proving one's own worth in society, hence it strongly rewards those who can perform, and can be punishing for those who decide to leech of society, no matter what station in life they hold. This encourages people to work hard and improve Betoriv for the good of all, allowing the talented to show their ability and perform their best. It cannot be said that Betoriv is a perfect land, though. While there is a noticeable lack of corruption in the upmarket, advanced cities and those that hold important government officials, corruption among low level civil servants and magistrates that never see the light of promotion isn't exactly an uncommon phenomenon, and there is just no way for the government to weed everything out. The low level government therefore can take advantage of the situation, even as they are constantly swapped out and replaced by others from the decisions of the higher ups. Also, as Betoriv is inevitably a Capitalist State, much like the Elven Nations in Kyrsides or Setora, it does have quite a large income gap which is also in part due to the very strong focus on Meritocratic ideals and advancing in life via talent, ability and hard work. Although the income inequality is not as bad as Setora's, the poor still own a relatively small share of the net worth that Betoriv has. As Mage Families tend to be naturally talented and have a culture of excellence, they also worsen the gap between the elite and normal people, due to their competence, which can cause social friction at times, although this is rare due to how almost the whole middle class has comfortable living standards and access to magic. Education The educational standard in Betoriv is extremely high, due to the mandatory schooling for children no matter where they come from, as well as the generally high preexisting educational level among adults, which will pass on to their children from home education. Education is generally provided at the cheapest possible price, and paid for by taxes. Thus, singles and couples without children are still forced to pay for the education of nation's children, making it more economical to have children. Betoriv's education has many streams, and will normally begin at an age of seven, although there are preschools for younger children, if their parents want. More often than not, though, they begin to learn from home first. At an age of seven, a normal child will normally begin four years of foundational schooling in both academic subjects and magic. They will then be able to proceed down two paths. The first would be to move on to four more years of middle school, which will teach life skills, various subjects in the arts and sciences, as well as other useful disciplines. Graduates from this will have the choice of moving on to various kinds of institutes, either offering Advanced Subjects, technical and practical training on a subject or simply vocational training, all of which take four years. Particularly bright students who discover an aptitude for magic may attend a two year bridging course on magical study to gain admittance to a Senior Mage Academy. The next would be to gain admission to a Junior Mage Academy, which is a special school for the education of the next generation of mages. Students who enter this must study for six years, learning advanced magic alongside advanced subjects, with no loss of content compared to a middle school, as mages are expected to be intelligent. Students who finish their Junior Mage Academy are entitled to enter a Senior Mage Academy. Children of established mage bloodlines may choose not to attend the foundational school, and instead attend a "magical primer" school, to teach them proper societal integration and magical control, as many of these children tend to be very intelligent, overly educated and too advanced to proceed with a normal curriculum. The schooling is only for one year, and all will move on to a Junior Mage Academy. Senior Mage Academies teach students for another four years in a narrower band of chosen subjects, and train them in magic. Also, other important skills for a mage, such as fencing and armor acclimatization, are carried out during this time. When a student finishes their Advanced Studies, Technical Training or their Senior Mage Academy, they become eligible for normal university, which teaches specific fields and leads to getting a Degree. Only those who attend a Senior Mage Academy will gain a qualification that entitles them to enter an Arcane University that gives advanced magic training. Finishing the Arcane University curriculum will award one with a "Practicing Mage Certificate", which is more prestigious than a Degree in many circles, and acts as a licence to use and teach magic. There are still post graduate courses from university for people to gain the equivalent of a "Master Degree" or a "Doctorate". A mage may also pursue further studies in magical theory to gain an "Advanced Magic Certificate" which qualifies one to many high tier jobs, and finally even a "Master Magic Certificate", which is the highest qualification for a mage, and allows one to set up or lead a Mage Academy or other magical institute. Economy Betoriv is a capitalist economy like the Elven Kingdoms of Kyrsides and Setora, and thus they work based on open trade, cash flows and production of goods. Due to the vast land size of Betoriv, they are able to engage in intensive primary industries of production, and their agriculture is able to meet the needs of their land quite comfortably. Technologies and magic allow for implementations of structures such as vertical farms and mining technologies to boost productivity. Betoriv further has a strong manufacturing sector due to the presence of industry in cities such as Pinnacle and Vidan, far away from most residential areas but still relatively accessible from the center of Betoriv. This allows them to produce a diverse range of goods both for domestic consumption as well as export to the other lands. Betoriv does maintain trade links with Kyrsides and Flinrock if possible, in order to exchange goods so that there is proper division and specialization of labour. Betoriv isn't very well known for its tertiary industries, which are only ever present within the cities, and which do not form an important part of their national income. This is mostly concentrated in tourist areas such as Goldshore City. Most of Betoriv's tertiary industry is focused on domestic retail and such. Betoriv has an extremely strong Quaternary Industry, and are at the forefront of research and development among the various nations of Carokiiv, where magic is concerned. Their technological advancement is second only to Setora's and this makes them the most developed nation where both technology and magic are considered. Betoriv is noted to use a lot of advanced applications of science and magic to improve the lives of its people, and they approach magic as a quantifiable science, making them very accepting of using magic for almost anything. For currency, Betoriv uses coins and notes, with the latter being the highest form of hand-held currency. Both currencies are protected through being manufactured with highly-classified methods, and counterfeit currencies are not tolerated if used on purpose, with the Prosecutors constantly hunting down any known counterfeiter. Geography Like all the northern and southern locations of Carokiiv, both the northern and southern part of Betoriv is known for it's cold climate. The industrial city of Vidan in north-eastern Betoriv is within close proximity to the north, and thus naturally has a cold climate for a majority of the year. The Fort of Southtide Watch, situated south-east of the continent, also experiences the same climate for the rest of the year. The more central parts of the continent are more temperate however. Due to this, the rest of Betoriv has a calm landscape, with many varying fields of terrain, including many types of forests other than tropical and sub-tropical, which exist by a very small amount and only within the vicinity of the continent's two port cities. Smaller towns and villages can be found in this area, focused more on primary industries like agriculture, mining and forestry. The vicinity of Highplain Village (Highplain City), a misnomer considering it is a walled city protected by spires, is known for it's lush grassfields and very bountiful crops, which were the reason it could grow from a mere village into a city over the years. It is considered Betoriv's second most important city after Azureridge city, which is why it is also the second most heavily defended and monitored. Light industries and manufacturing are also located in this area. Northwest of the city lies Highplain Hills, which also contains some of the rarest herbs found in Betoriv, but also presents danger to prospecting herbalists due to the hills' apex predators; the Drakes and Wyverns, and both Draconids compete for the native wild griffins there, which serve as their primary food source. No villages exist close to it for this reason. The Betoriv capital of Azureridge City is considered to have the "most balanced" geographic setting. Many of the integral details remain classified from people outside of Betoriv. Azureridge city is known to be self sufficient even if closed, due to its diversity of key industries and large area. Southwestern Betoriv is under the charge of Azureridge city. The Betoriv cities near the edges of the sea (Goldshore City and Old East Shanties) are the only two regions known to have a tropical setting, but their beaches are somehow very clean and have white sand. They are tourism based economic regions which depend on fisheries, whaling, tourism and leisure activities to supply them with money. Both are also known to be housing regions for those who want a sea view. The Old East Shanties, despite its rundown name, is the administrative center of southeastern Betoriv that is also a prosperous city, having grown from an actual shanty which housed fishermen in days long gone. As with all other cities, they are protected by military presence and defense spires. The southernmost major city of Betoriv is Pinnacle City, and this is basically the industrial zone of Betoriv, where innovation takes place due to the teams of scientists and engineers that reside there. The north-western mountains of Betoriv is known for it's extreme hostility to most forms of life, and unusual auras that can be felt by mages within close proximity of the mountains and are detectable to a extremely-limited degree by even the best Clairvoyant specialists. The mountains have many powerful magical spires built on them to keep what's on the other side of the range permanently on the other side, for a very good reason. Legends say that the mountains are home to many Draconids, and there are sometimes sightings of the legendary Vampires. It is rumored the other side of the mountain contains "a secret that is better forgotten than remembered." It is considered a very dark part of Betoriv's history, and due to the disappearances of all those who travel deep in the mountains or through sea to reach the forgotten region of the continent, the Betoriv government warned all its people to avoid traveling to the north-west. As in their words: "Those who seek a legend meant to be buried for eternity do so at their own peril..." Government The government of Betoriv is an Aristocracy based on the principle of "only the learned should rule". Hence, only those with the appropriate theory and practical skills may apply to become part of the government, and additional training is needed once one becomes a proper governmental official. Promotions are handed out based on merit to civil servants. Corruption is virtually non existent in the upper echelons of the Government, and difficult to find even among the lower echelons, due to a combination of choosing the right people, the draconian punishment against corrupt individuals and the general high pay of civil servants to give them enough to spend on all their necessities. Betoriv's government is split into three branches, to ensure that there are checks and balances. There is a judicial branch of lawyers, judges and courts, a legislative branch of Members of Parliament and their various staffs, as well as an executive branch that is centered on a council of leaders, not a president, as well as associated staff. The Members of Parliament are elected by the people from a pool of prospective, carefully selected candidates, which all have passed the rigorous training to become a proper leader of the people. It is impossible for any normal person to simply stand for election, and in fact attempting such can be considered as a public disruption and lead to a criminal charge. Doing so in Azureridge is considered a serious criminal offense. The Executive Branch leaders are all drawn from Members of Parliament or the Judicial Branch, and tend to have went through even more training processes. They are internally elected by the Parliament and normal citizens do not elect them with votes. Only civil servants of a certain rank (such as Archmages of Mage Academies), the legislative branch and the judicial branch may cast votes for who to be part of the executive branch. People on the executive branch serve for up to two terms of six years each. Lastly, the Judiciary is always appointed by state, and there are no elections. Only when one has the appropriate qualifications may one attempt to join, and every prospective candidate will have a trial period of undefined length where they can be instantly removed if they do a poor job, judged by experienced members of the Judiciary. Only when confirmed do they get a permanent job and full pay. The Police is paid for by the state using taxes, and are well paid to do their job. Thus it is hard to find corruption within the state police, and due to performance incentives, they are motivated to actually do their job at protecting interior peace within Betoriv. The law courts function differently from other places. Law courts do not directly indict the defendant, and instead only allow for the prosecution to present their side of the evidence, and for a defense lawyer to debunk the evidences. Criminals and suspects do not even know that they are being monitored and evidence is collected against them. Due to the widespread adoption of mind reading magic and general use of security devices like image capturing orbs, it is very hard to get away with crime, and the prosecution will immediately crack down on the criminal and judge them on the spot when their crime is confirmed, with support from the state police. Thus, state prosecutors are trained mages, and are also tasked with apprehending the criminals they are to convict. Criminals do not have right to attorney and once a sentence is passed, it sticks. The laws of Betoriv are reviewed annually, and generally try to balance internal security and freedoms. Considering many liberties are mutually exclusive in a multicultural society, certain freedoms like freedom of speech need to be curtailed in order to give citizens a feeling of safety and security, rather than legalizing lethal force and loosening the definition of self defense. Murder is a crime that is punishable by death or life imprisonment, normally the former, and mental disease is not accepted as a defense against a murder charge. Betoriv uses a progressive tax system for most of its taxation, under the purview of a combined Judicial and Legislative branch that acts as a monetary authority, but has implemented fixed taxes on vices such as drugs, gambling, prostitution and unhealthy foods. This is both to redistribute wealth in a more fair manner, and make sure it is not hoarded by individuals. The government might give tax rebates or additional taxes to various individuals to correct for any inefficiencies that it finds, and taxes can range from none where the poor are concerned to nearly 90% for people trying to simply hoard wealth without contributing back. The average taxation for the highest class is about 30% though. Aid Programs in Betoriv do not focus in directly helping the needy, but rather provide for free education, healthcare, food and such for only the children, who may be taken away and placed into foster care homes. This is because the government doesn't agree on providing a free lunch for the poor or those who decide not to work. The children are therefore taught to be useful, contributing members of society away from their parents who choose to waste their lives away. Military By law and custom, certified mages that finish Arcane University are conscripted into Betoriv's military, having no exception, with no restrictions regarding gender or age. The minimum time of service for these mages who are conscripted is one year, where they undertake courses and learn attack, defense and tactical maneouvres both as the commander and the soldier on the ground. When the mages complete their service, they are given opportunities to actually "sign on" as officers directly, and can be promoted all the way to become a general of the army if they show good performance. Other citizens who are not certified mages have the option to volunteer their service to the army, and they will not be conscripted unless there is a necessity during times of war. They will form up the bulk of the fighting force eventually, as the normal soldiers as well as specialists. Rarely, if these individuals are extremely capable, they can become officers. The Azuran Guard serve as the backbone of Betoriv's military, consisting of it's army of mages as their arsenal. Compared to the Setorans, they have an average navy and air force. However, due to the power and capability of Betoriv's mages, it changes very little, and the Human-ruled nation is considered to have the most powerful defense out of all the other nations, more than capable of repelling any kind of invasion. A large portion of the Azure Army is stationed at Azureridge City, the capital of Betoriv; their air force, the Azure Fleet, seated on the city of Pinnacle to the south of the continent, and the Azure Navy at Fort Illia. All three branches of the military have strategic outposts scattered across the continent as well. The most integral of these outposts remain hidden from others except to the right people. Notable Locations Settlements Azureridge City Azureridge City is the capital and seat of Betoriv and its government in addition to its military. Highly regarded as the most advanced and largest city in Carokiiv, and is known for it's orderly streets, strict laws and city ordinances. Azureridge city is known to have zero tolerances for vices within its boundaries, and otherwise legalized (in other parts of Betoriv) activities such as smoking, consuming drugs and prostitution are considered illegal. Pollutive emissions within the city is also illegal, as is riding a living mount like a horse. Azureridge city is known to contain the magic generation capacity of the whole western side of Betoriv, and within it is located many key infrastructures such as research institutes, magic reactors, vertical farms with climate control, various important industries and of course, the seat of Betoriv's government. The city is known to also house elite defense forces and is surrounded by multiple layers of ever larger magic spires that are powerful enough to lay waste to a whole army. Security is very tight and the city only has three gates, each with checkpoints. Azureridge city is also where most of the top ranked schools and Mage Academies are located. The average standard of education inside is very high, and the city houses the upper class of Betoriv, namely their scholars, merchants and artisans who have higher than average incomes. The city is known to be self sufficient even if closed. Blue Guard Blue Guard is a port city that also doubles as a Fort in itself along with its local lighthouses and powerful defenses. Those that seek to enter Betoriv from the east must go through here and pass all prerequisite requirements. The presence here is mostly military and there is only limited fishing industry. Fort Illia Fort Illia is a military fortress situated west of Betoriv, close to the sea, and similarly functions as an entry point for the nation. It is noted to be more militarized than that of it's eastern counterpart; The Blue Guard. The location is practically a military base for the armies of Betoriv, and is well defended by its inhabitants as well as autonomous defense systems such as magic spires. The fort itself is noted to be very hard to directly attack. Goldshore City Goldshore City is well known for its luxury and decadence by those inside and outside of Betoriv. It is a major tourist and upmarket residential spot of Betoriv, being close to the sea. Many forms of luxury and exotic goods can be found here as it is a port. Goldshore city is a walled city, and it is also protected by a military presence in the form of the navy, along with the ubiquitous defense spires. Aside from the shopping and tourism, Goldshore City is also important for its fishing and whaling businesses, due to how it faces open ocean where such resources are normally found. Various vices and tourist traps such as casinos and bars are located inside Goldshore City. Goldshore City is perhaps where most of the vices of Betoriv are concentrated, in order to facilitate the engagement of tourists and those who wish to engage in them. There is a local government which administers the city only, for Azureridge City directly manages the regional governance. Highplain Village Highplain Village is not a village, but a city, due to the vagaries of time. It was originally a village in the far past that was known for its mainly agricultural pursuits, and also its strategic position. Due to the influx of trade and the selling of agricultural products, Highplain Village slowly grew into a town, and then a walled city. However, the name Highplain Village stuck, out of a respect for tradition. Highplain Village has a strong military presence due to how it is the only major city in central Betoriv. It is almost a back up capital and there are many government services and similar inside the city. It is the local government for central Betoriv. Unlike Azureridge city, the security is not as tight or intense, and vices are not banned. Highplain Village enjoys a very strong military presence, and it is also protected well by defensive spires, having multiple layer defense like Azureridge, although on a much smaller scale. It is thus very difficult to attack without suffering severe losses. Old East Shanties The Old East Shanties shares the similar misnomer as Highplain Village due to the fact that their names are only kept by tradition, and have been rendered untrue by progress. The Old East Shanties started out as a simple seaside for fishermen and their families, but the rich fisheries and good business attracted more settlers, and it grew into a city in time. It is well-known as a tourist spot due to its very clean beaches as well as good seaside dining where seafood is concerned. Contrary to its name, The Old East Shanties actually contain some of the most expensive residential housing due to the views it brings for its inhabitants. Considered as the more lawful and strict counterpart to Goldshore City, and a place where the rich go to escape the hustle and bustle of society. It is known to not have much high rise buildings aside its defense spires. As with all Betoriv cities, there is a local government, a local military presence, and walls. Defensive spires protect the area. Pinnacle Pinnacle is considered a minor economic zone where most primary and tertiary industries are concerned. It is, however, also considered the industrial sector of the continent for good reason, due to how many heavy industries are concentrated there. It earned its name for the large castle-like tower that 'houses it's heart and soul.' This is actually a prototype defense spire that can fire powerful beams. Pinnacle is also where a lot of military goods and research is produced and completed. It is heavily guarded by the military, and has a two wall layers, with spires in each layer, providing powerful defense. Southtide Watch Southtide Watch is a military Fort situated in southern Betoriv, and is considered as the southern guard of the continent at a high elevation. It is a base of the Betoriv army, and thus is inhabited by soldiers and support staff. Like all military bases, it is protected by spires. Vidan Vidan was once a small settlement situated near the lake of the same name, it came a long way into becoming a city and a key strategic position in the north. Despite it's cold climate and city life, it is noted to be one of the most quiet, and it's lake is widely believed to hold great wonders. The provincial government of the northern districts of Betoriv govern from within Vidan, and most of the trade towards the North will flow into Vidan first. It is protected by spires and a local military presence, making it difficult to capture. Major Minor Other Bismuth Not much is known regarding Bismuth due to the lack of historical information regarding it's past, but it is well-known that those who try to venture there are expected not to return. It is thought to be the homeland of the Vampires and perhaps where Odyss lives. Category:Tides of Fate Category:Places